2017-06-30

CloudHealth Technologies Raises $46 Million on Path to IPO

Cloud management firm CloudHealth Technologies has raised $46 million in a Series D funding round led by Kleiner Perkins, and will nearly double its workforce to 250 by the end of the calendar year, the company announced Tuesday.

Kleiner Perkins, which has provided venture capital to many successful U.S. internet companies including Amazon, Google, and Twitter, is a new investor for this round. Existing investors Sapphire Ventures, .406 Ventures, and Scale Venture Partners, as well as new investor MeriTech Capital Partners also participated in the round.

“CloudHealth Technologies is capitalizing on one of the most profound transitions in IT history by helping its customers navigate and optimize the adoption and usage of cloud infrastructure,” Alex Kurland, partner at Kleiner Perkins said in a statement. “The team identified an opportunity in hybrid cloud management early on and executed on its vision, establishing itself as the clear leader in the market. It’s rare to see a company that provides such immediate and immense value to both cutting-edge technology startups and Fortune 500 enterprises alike.”

The company’s revenue increased by more than 130 percent in 2016, and it has opened offices in Amsterdam, Singapore, Sydney, Tel Aviv, and Washington D.C. So far in 2017. CloudHealth says it now serves more than 1,300 direct and indirect customers.

“This investment will help propel us into the next stage of growth as we scale the entire company,” Dan Phillips, CEO and co-founder of CloudHealth Technologies said. “We’re thrilled to be backed by venture capital firms with such a strong reputation for launching many of today’s biggest technology stars. Their expertise and proven track record will ensure that we continue to dominate our market, make strategic hires and roll out customer-driven enhancements that have a serious impact on our customers’ bottom lines and gross margins.”

CloudHealth’s flagship platform extended support from public cloud to include VMware and physical server environments in May.

2016-07-20

IT revenues in Latin America are projected to grow by over 20 percent in 2016, led by big data and cloud computing, according to a report released Tuesday by Frost & Sullivan.

The 2016 Latin America Outlook for the Information Technology Services Industryshows major growth in the opportunities available in the market for security providers as various stakeholders come together to tackle lingering reliability and infrastructure impediments.

IT services in the region are expected to bring in $7.78 billion in 2016, up from $6.46 billion in 2015. Data center services remain the source of almost half of the sector’s regional revenue, but its compound annual growth rate is lower than any of the other services examined, including cloud computing, big data and analytics, mobility, and managed security services. Managed security revenues are predicted to grow by 18.4 percent from $580.2 million in 2015 to $687.5 million this year.

“One of the biggest hurdles to the mass adoption of potentially disruptive technologies is security,” Frost & Sullivan Digital Transformation Consultant Leandro Scalize said in a statement. “No matter which technology is in focus, without a well-drawn security strategy, there is little chance of long-term success.”

2015-08-15

More Than 600K Web-Facing Computers Still Run Windows Server 2003: Netcraft

Although it has been nearly a month since Windows Server 2003 extended support ended, 175 million websites have been found by Netcraft’s latest survey still being served by the obsolete system. Netcraft’s July Web Server Survey shows that over 600,000 web-facing computers, serving a fifth of all websites, are still running Windows Server 2003, and therefore exposed to elevated cybersecurity risk.

The last major update to Windows Server 2003 was Service Pack 2, released 8 years ago, and of computers still running it, 73 percent are served by Microsoft Internet Information Services 6.0, the version which shipped with Windows Server 2003. The Server header for another 1.7 million sites served from other operating systems also indicated Microsft IIS/6.0, and therefore more Windows Server 2003 machines in back-end use, further increasing the scope of risk.

Netcraft estimates that 609,000 computers, or just over 10 percent of all web-facing computers, are still running Windows Server 2003. Because software licenses are usually granted at a per-machine cost, the number of installations is the best indication of the total cost of migration to supported systems.

Of those computers, the majority (55 percent) are in the US and China, though the two countries make up only 42 percent of other web-facing computers. Alibaba subsidiary HiChina, which it acquired in 2009, operates roughly 12,000 instances of Windows Server 2003, while the company’s cloud division Aliyun hosts 7,500. Aliyun,which just boosted its relational database suite with an EnterpriseDB partnership, still offers Windows Server 2003 VMs.

Companies using Windows Server 2003 include bank Natwest, ANZ, and Grupo Bancolombia. Other companies such asLivePerson and ING Direct also serves sites via F5 BIG IP devices, so their Windows Server 2003 machines are not directly exposed to the internet.

While migration for some sites may happen slowly, any business subject to thePayment Card Industry Data Security Standard (PCI DSS) has automatically failed to comply with the standard by using Windows Server 2003 anywhere in its environment. PCI DSS requires all software to be up to date with vendor-supplied security patches.

Thirty-five percent of IT spending is happening outside of IT departments, according to a study released by CA Technologies this week. This spending is driven by lines of business, and is expected to rise to 44 percent within three years.

The study “TechInsights Report: The Changing Role of IT and What to Do About It” was drawn from survey responses by 1,300 IT leaders for large enterprises from around the world.

The report shows that traditional IT duties like maintaining infrastructure and applications and fixing problems as they arise are the top priorities for IT departments, at 41 and 35 percent respectively. Meanwhile the transformation of technology to corporate-wide business enabler is reshaping the way it is purchased, deployed, and used.

“Software and technology are disrupting business models, creating new businesses from the ground up and even transforming entire industries,” CA Technologies CTO John Michelsen said. “Customers are demanding new applications and a different experience, and employees require new tools to succeed and be productive. As a result, we are seeing a seismic shift in the way technology is seen, purchased, used and deployed across the enterprise. IT departments must evolve from single-source providers to business consultants, brokers and advisors, or risk becoming marginalized in the software and technology-driven economy.”

Despite this, driving new business initiatives and innovative products/services are top priority for only one quarter of IT departments.

IT departments are also not helping their own influence, as only 31 percent frequently share key performance measurements, 27 percent evaluate the impact of changes in investment, and 37 percent measure IT against its key performance indicators.

The growth of shadow IT is both an example of the new way technology pervades enterprises and a risk of IT departments not playing an active enough role in their organization’s technology use.

While historically maintenance activities accounted for 80 percent of IT budgets, the study indicates that development and deployment of new services is now as great a portion, and still growing. IT leaders will have to adapt to influence and guide IT investments, not just manage them.

2014-02-20

Facebook buying Whatsapp... for $16 billion!

Source: http://www.imore.com/facebook-buying-whatsapp-16-billion

Facebook has just announced that they're buying the popular instant messaging (IM) app WhatsApp for an incredibly cool 19 billion-with-a-b dollars. That's $4 billion in cash, $12 billion in shares, and $3 billion in restricted stock for the founders and employees that'll divest over the next 4 years. So why is Facebook spending all this money on WhatsApp and what are they getting for it?

Facebook, of course, has their own popular IM app, Facebook Messenger, just like they had their own photos platform before they bought Instagram. Like Instagram, WhatsApp will remain its own app, and be run independently from Facebook. That will either maintain options or fragment resources, depending on how you look at it.

There's also a huge overlap between social networks and instant messenger apps in general. Arguably, social networks rose from older instant messenger apps, then went full circle and became them, at least in part. IM is huge business, hot business, and growing business. Many companies never see their replacement — or obsolesce — coming. Facebook seems intent on not making that mistake and clearly have the bank account to back it up.

The problem with trying to buy your potential replacements in the market is that it's infinitely expensive. There's always the next maybe-big-thing coming. Will WhatsApp end up really being worth $16 billion to Facebook, especially in a volatile market that includes other major players like Line, WeChat, BBM, and many more?

Time will tell, but read the full press release below and tell me what you think...

Facebook to Acquire WhatsApp

Acquisition accelerates Facebook’s ability to bring connectivity and utility to the world Leading mobile messaging company will continue to operate independently and retain its brand WhatsApp co-founder and CEO Jan Koum to join Facebook Board of Directors

MENLO PARK, CALIF. – February 19, 2014 – Facebook today announced that it has reached a definitive agreement to acquire WhatsApp, a rapidly growing cross-platform mobile messaging company, for a total of approximately $16 billion, including $4 billion in cash and approximately $12 billion worth of Facebook shares. The agreement also provides for an additional $3 billion in restricted stock units to be granted to WhatsApp’s founders and employees that will vest over four years subsequent to closing.

WhatsApp has built a leading and rapidly growing real-time mobile messaging service, with: Over 450 million people using the service each month; 70% of those people active on a given day; Messaging volume approaching the entire global telecom SMS volume; and Continued strong growth, currently adding more than 1 million new registered users per day.

The acquisition supports Facebook and WhatsApp's shared mission to bring more connectivity and utility to the world by delivering core internet services efficiently and affordably. The combination will help accelerate growth and user engagement across both companies.

"WhatsApp is on a path to connect 1 billion people. The services that reach that milestone are all incredibly valuable," said Mark Zuckerberg, Facebook founder and CEO. "I've known Jan for a long time and I'm excited to partner with him and his team to make the world more open and connected."

Jan Koum, WhatsApp co-founder and CEO, said, “WhatsApp's extremely high user engagement and rapid growth are driven by the simple, powerful and instantaneous messaging capabilities we provide. We're excited and honored to partner with Mark and Facebook as we continue to bring our product to more people around the world.”

Facebook fosters an environment where independent-minded entrepreneurs can build companies, set their own direction and focus on growth while also benefiting from Facebook’s expertise, resources and scale. This approach is working well with Instagram, and WhatsApp will operate in this manner. WhatsApp’s brand will be maintained; its headquarters will remain in Mountain View, CA; Jan Koum will join Facebook’s Board of Directors; and WhatsApp’s core messaging product and Facebook’s existing Messenger app will continue to operate as standalone applications.

Upon closing of the deal, all outstanding shares of WhatsApp capital stock and options to purchase WhatsApp capital stock will be cancelled in exchange for $4 billion in cash and 183,865,778 shares of Facebook Class A common stock (worth $12 billion based on the average closing price of the six trading days preceding February 18, 2014 of $65.2650 per share). In addition, upon closing, Facebook will grant 45,966,444 restricted stock units to WhatsApp employees (worth $3 billion based on the average closing price of the six trading days preceding February 18, 2014 of $65.2650 per share). As of February 17, 2014, Facebook had 2,551,654,996 Class A and B shares outstanding plus approximately 139 million dilutive securities primarily consisting of unvested RSUs. The Class A common stock and RSUs issued to WhatsApp shareholders and employees upon closing will represent 7.9% of Facebook shares based on current shares and RSUs outstanding.

In the event of termination of the Merger Agreement under certain circumstances principally related to a failure to obtain required regulatory approvals, the Merger Agreement provides for Facebook to pay WhatsApp a fee of $1 billion in cash and to issue to WhatsApp a number of shares of Facebook’s Class A common stock equal to $1 billion based on the average closing price of the ten trading days preceding such termination date.

Facebook was advised by Allen & Company LLC and Weil, Gotshal & Manges LLP; and WhatsApp was advised by Morgan Stanley and Fenwick & West, LLP.

A list of Yahoo Mail usernames and passwords was obtained via a compromised third party database, impacting an unspecified number of users, according to an announcement on Thursday.

This security breach comes at a critical time for Yahoo after its revenue dropped 6 percent in the fourth quarter of 2014, causing its shares to fall 7.5 percent on Wednesday.

According to anannouncement by Yahoo, it has changed the passwords of affected users, and is using “second sign-on verification to allow users to re-secure their accounts.”

Yahoo is working with federal law enforcement in its investigation on the attack, and has implemented “additional measures” to block attacks against its systems.

“We have no evidence that they were obtained directly from Yahoo’s systems,” Jay Rossiter, SVP, Platforms and Personalization Products said in a Tumblr post. “Our ongoing investigation shows that malicious computer software used the list of usernames and passwords to access Yahoo Mail accounts. The information sought in the attack seems to be names and email addresses from the affected accounts’ most recent sent emails.”

2013-12-11

Hong Kong Data Center Advantages

Information and Communications Technology

As Asia’s leading logistics, transportation and financial hub, Hong Kong is the natural choice for ICT companies wanting to service clients across Asia.

Hong Kong itself provides a ready market for ICT companies, with 3,800 regional headquarters or offices based in the city and thousands of Hong Kong businesses located throughout the Greater Pearl River Delta (GPRD) region. Hong Kong is also strategically located in the centre of Asia, so regional ICT projects can be effectively implemented and managed from a hub in Hong Kong, where a highly-skilled workforce is readily available.

Hong Kong’s exceptional infrastructure also makes it an ideal base for companies serving global markets and an excellent site for data centres. Its world-class telecommunication infrastructure ranks second in the Penetration of High Speed Optical Technologies Index 2011. Connections include eight submarine cable systems, 17 overland cable systems and eight satellites for external communications, with more on the way in 2012 and 2013 including the Asia Submarine-Cable Express and the Southeast-Asia Japan Cable. This suitability is boosted by a reliable electricity supply (currently exceeding 99.99 percent) and an environment relatively free of natural disasters.

Data Centres

With its sophisticated high-tech infrastructure, tech-savvy professionals, reliable power supply, and robust enforcement of data privacy and security, Hong Kong offers an excellent location for high-end regional data centres in Asia-Pacific. As the region’s business hub, Hong Kong is home to many logistics, finance and professional services companies, all of whom rely on secured data centre facilities to support their operations. Many of these companies are outsourcing data storage and management, presenting an exciting opportunity for data centre operators.

InvestHK’s ICT team can offer practical guidance and support to data centre operators looking for expansion opportunities, as well as to business end users interested in setting up their own data centre facilities in the region.

Cloud Technology

Hong Kong is a leading regional hub for cloud technology, offering exciting local opportunities and great potential as a launchpad for expansion into Mainland China and international markets.

As a global centre for the finance and manufacturing industries, which are the largest adopters of cloud technology services, Hong Kong enjoys strong local demand with good growth potential.

Demand is boosted by the Hong Kong Government’s proposal to deliver e-services and information via cloud computing. The proposed Government Cloud environment includes functions to support infrastructure as a service (IaaS), platform as a service (PaaS) and software as a service (SaaS) in the form of a private cloud for use by all government offices and departments.

If you want to find out more about opportunities relating to cloud computing in Hong Kong, please contact InvestHK’s ICT team.

Software and Services

The software and service industry is a key component of Hong Kong’s ICT sector. Demand from multinationals and SME clients is strong. Many of the world’s leading software services companies base their regional operations such as sales and marketing, finance, technical support and human resources in the city, mirroring their clients’ preference for Hong Kong as a regional base.

Hong Kong’s rigorous protection of intellectual property, and its tech-savvy consumers make the city an ideal testbed for companies seeking to launch new products into Mainland China.

InvestHK has helped software and services providers set up in Hong Kong. To find out more, please contact InvestHK’s ICT team.